During the interview, Bateson offered up some insight he has gained into both his character and the Hitman series over the 17 years he has been involved with the games. All of that experience has given him a keen sense for Hitman and, in particular, what the future of the series could look like, and Bateson suggested that Hitman could be the perfect choice to capitalize on a Pokemon GO-style approach to mobile gaming:
While Bateson was quick to add that the idea was “just a thought off the top of my head”, it isn’t a stretch to imagine that the concept has already been discussed, however lightly, at IO Interactive. After all, the Hitman series has already begun to blur the lines between fantasy and reality by offering up celebrity contracts, and implementing GPS functionality and the alternate reality game approach of Pokemon GO into a game based around assassination sounds like a recipe for success.
That isn’t to say that it will happen, of course, and Bateson himself lamented that a Pokemon GO-style Hitman title “might cause chaos in the streets, though.” Given that the episodic content in the newest Hitman has already been well-received and Hitman GO already exists, it is possible gamers simply see an upgrade to the latter should IO and Square Enix decide to pursue mobile gaming even further.
For now, Bateson, along with the rest of us, will have to simply dream of a world where Hitman meets Pokemon GO on mobile devices. Given the risks that Square Enix has been taking lately, however, it doesn’t seem entirely outside the realm of possibility that the future of Hitman could head in that direction after all.
Hitman is available now for PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
